Serene Principality of Okina

Okina is an oasis in the Feywilds- a valley of greatest abundance surrounded by some of the roughest hills and peaks the Feywild has to offer. It is ancient and pristine, its capital unsullied by any occupying force not from Okina itself. It is a safe harbor, with a thriving and diverse population from across the continent. Outsiders know it as the kingdom of the Vesper. Those who visit it know that it is so much more.
Okina was once a powerful city-state turned empire, with aspirations of unifying the entire Feywilds. Centuries of internal strife in the once-massive capital city of Okina has spread the population more evenly across the valley.
To some, Okina is a realm of safety and order; to others, it is a regime of paranoia and tyranny. The Cult of Deraksa, anonymous and hidden from public view, rules without question. A robust network of spies and assassins and one of the Feywild's two great merchant consortiums- The Dusk Travelers- police their vision of order. The Crowned Bat sees all, and the words it speaks are heaven's law.

Structure

The Serene Council is an oligarchic body of 10 administrators chosen from the most wealthy and prestigious families. Families can run campaigns to nominate candidates, but the Council selects who joins it as long as the Oracles approve of the candidate.
One of the Serene Council is the Lord/Lady Protector, who runs the capital city of Okina directly. The other nine divide the responsibilities between them- military, economic, diplomatic, and administrative. Each Serene will typically appoint deputies (customarily around five each)- the Reverent Prosecutors (typically just called the Reverent).
In parallel to the Serene Council is the Circle of Oracles- 10 seers that run the largest religious body, the Cult of Deraksa. The Voice of Heaven is the leader of this circle, though the positions alternates between them weekly.

History

The Serene Principality harkens back to ancient custom- the Oligarchy of Ten was the first government of Okina over 2000 years ago. This is Okina's second attempt at a Serene Council in the last 200 years, the prior one having been a compromise between merchant elites and autonomous tribes. Attempts by the increasingly marginalized tribes to forcibly seize power in 1944 led to the capture and execution of their leaders and the absolute victory of the theocratic and merchant elites in their new council.
The past century has been one of stability and expansion after long centuries of civil strife. After the collapse of the Okinan empire in 1650, the principality was a land of petty monarchs and internal warfare for two hundred years. Major plague, civil war, and raids from Nefka all left Okina reduced in size and strength. Okina is only just reclaiming the core lands of the old empire- the Central Feywilds.
The rediscovery of Okina's glory has fed into a kind of political nostalgia- government from the classical era, imperial grandeur from almost 500 years ago. That nostalgia is the basis of Okinan political philosophy: that the perfect government of Gods once existed but is now being echoed. By reflecting the best parts of the past, the Vespers recreate the perfect original voice of the divine.

Demography and Population

320,000 humanoids live in Okina, 30,000 of them in the city of Okina and 20,000 in various towns around the valley. 65% of the population is Vesper, 15% is Human, 10% is Dryad, 5% is Haltia, 3% is Kobold, 2% are Other ( Prism, Half Prism, Half-Dryad, Pearl Pangolin, Solar, etc).
30,000 cats live in the Serene Principality

Territories

Okina directly controls the valley of Okina and surrounding hills- a 65 x 85 mile stretch. While not as large as what it once commanded, the valley is the most prosperous and arable land in the Feywilds. The surrounding hillside becomes the Impossible Mountains to the South- the tallest and least controllable territory in the Feywilds.

Military

The Okinan Sacred Guard serve as the central bulk of Okina's military. Professional, well armed, and disciplined, the Sacred Guard excels at border security and pitched field battles but has neither the mobility nor the size to subjugate hill tribes. Primarily a deterrent against raiding and Nefkan invasion, Okina relies entirely on mercenaries, tribal allies, and raiding groups associated with the Dusk Travelers to project power.

Religion

Okina hosts a variety of religious cults and groups, measuring religious obedience through participation in public ritual rather than belief. The Cult of Deraksa (Goddess of Knowledge, Memory, Prophecy, Magic, and Caves) is the central religious authority. The Tomes of Prophecy and Memory dictate the calendar, the holidays, and what cult is permitted and what cult is considered deviant and illegal. These Tomes can be altered and added to by the Oracles - the ten great Seers of Okina.
Worship of Deraksa is universal here and basically unanimous with civic participation. Not all public rituals are to her though: Other holidays are dedicated to Tonia, goddess of creation and life; Halycon, the Goddess of Dryads, Storm, and Punishment; Ishkibal, God of Redemption and War; Kordina, the Cat Goddess of Agriculture and Civilization; Atersain, the Desmian Healing God; and Vitoza, God of Judgment and the Underworld.
Ishkibism is also popular here, courting the diverse non-Vesper population and serving as the primary counterbalance to the Cult of Deraksa. The Cult of Vitoza also plays a public role both as protectors of burial grounds and as clerks and officials in the legal system.

Foreign Relations

Okina's diplomacy is its primary tool of conquest- using assassins, bribes, threats, and incentives to vassalize and absorb surrounding states. This does alienate a fair number of its potential allies, and has earned Okina a reputation as being shifty and traitorous.
The only power that actively dislikes Okina is the Empire of Nefka to the South, the primary rival to Okina's wealth and might.

"We Speak the Voice of Gods"

Founding Date

1945

Type

Geopolitical, Empire

Capital

Okina

Demonym

Okinan

Government System

Oligarchy

Power Structure

Unitary state

Economic System

Mixed economy

Currency

Asalayan Gold Dragons, Silver Eagles, Copper Bulls

Legislative Body

The Serene Council

Judicial Body

The Cult Vitoza the Many Eyed/The Tribune

Official State Religion

Zirun

Subsidiary Organizations

• Dusk Travelers

Location

The Feywilds

Official Languages

• Desmian language

Controlled Territories

• Okina

Neighboring Nations

• Kingdom of Tikra

Related Plots

• God of the Empty Sky